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Toddlers: 24 Months+
AT WHAT AGE?
would you leave your teenager home alone for a few hours? my sil's neighbor is moving and she has a 10 year old son that she has to leave home alone from the time school gets out and she gets home from work, total of about 3 hours because she has no one to watch him. i think that is insane. this got me thinking, what age is appropriate to leave dc home alone for a few hours? i don't even know but i am definitely not comfortable with 10, 11, or even 12?!
what age did your parents leave you alone home (with or without siblings)? i think my older brother was about 15 when my parents left all three of us home for a while.
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Re: AT WHAT AGE?
I was left alone with my little sister (who is 2 years younger) when I was 12. I was left with my older brother when he was 14 or so.
I think 10 is too young
Well it is ENTIRELY DIFFERENT to leave 1 kid alone at those ages vs. 2 or 3 LOL .... I wasnt allowed to stay home alone till I was 12, Hell I started babysitting at 12, ALONE! ID NEVER LEAVE MY KID WITH A 12 yr OLD ALONE!!! Maybe, a "Mothers Helper" when Im home doing chores, etc. but NEVER alone....BUT My mom NEVER left me and my brother (twin) alone together till we were at least 15ish....
SIL doesnt even leave her DD (16) with her 9 yr old son because they would KILL ea other! If the daughter was more mature about how she let her brother "effect" her then she could prob handle it but now, no way!
I remember staying alone at my house starting at the age of 9. My older sister (21 at the time) lived right next door and I had a noisy neighbor that would keep a close eye on me at my mothers request.
That was a while back. I dont think I would leave my teenage daughter in the house without adult supervision. But it all depends on the circumstances. I will worry about it when is time.
i COMPLETELY AGREE! of course she does many things i would never do but this has me really sad for her ds. she said he is going to stay in the apartment and not allowed out until she gets home, but HELLO! what about any freak that could get to him or pick up on the fact that he is home alone. this is the type of stuff you see on the news that has the potential to end in tragedy. the stupidity kills me.
I was left with my brother around 8ish(he would of been 11) and by myself when I was 10.
It depends on the kid on what age. I know that I was starting high school at age 12 though so I think before then.
I have a sister who his 2 years younger than me. The earliest that I can recall being left by ourselves at home was when I was around 11 and she was 9. I think it was the summer between 5th and 6th grade for me.
I think the fact that there were 2 of us made my mom more comfortable with leaving us by ourselves.
Like, Dani, I was babysitting when I was 12 or 13. I would watch relatives mostly. At that age, I would be watching my sister, and 2 of my cousins (who at that time were probably 3 and 8) all at once! Gah. That sounds crazy when I think about it now!! lol.
First of all, let me just say that I agree with you. However, the problem is that after school daycares and summer programs stop allowing kids to come at the age of 11-12 so there is no where for them to go. Working parents sometimes have no choice once they reach that age.
That being said, my SIL/BIL are leaving their 10 year old home alone this summer all.day.long. I was very against this (never said so to them because it isn't my business), but they rationalize it because mom works about 2-3 miles away at a bank and goes home for lunch. Granddad also checks in with her some days. However, I just think this would be really boring for the kid?!? I would rather my DD be in a summer program that takes them swimming, to the movies, bowling and just hang out with other kids and play. I wouldn't do it, but I guess I wouldn't say anything if someone else chose to.
I was a latch key kid. I was alone after school for a few hours myself at the age of 9 or 10. Wasn't a problem. I was a good kid and much preferred it to going to my aunt's house and getting tortured by my cousins.
Will I do it with DD? No idea. I'll let you know in 7 years.
I think it really depends on the kid. I was babysitting (a 4 mo old!) by myself by the time I was 12.
I also think it depends on the neighborhood. Where I grew up there were TONS of SAHMs around. Even if my mom wasn't there, if I needed something I could have gone to a neighbor for help.
This is what scares me the most I think. I swear to you and I am not exaggerating (know them personally) a 10-11 year old got pregnant because she got off the bus alone with another 10-11 year old boy (neighborhood stop) and they hung out for several hours everyday before their parents got home. You know what happens when you get bored!
I think I was around 11 or so when I was able to stay home sick by myself at home. Definitely 12.
I was 10 when I first started babysitting. First time was till midnight with a 1 year old and three old. That's insane!
I was the third child out of four so I wasn't really left alone, but i think 12 maybe? Maybe even 10-11, for an hour or so.
I think it really does depend on the kid and the neighbourhood. I'm sure that my sister and I were left alone by the time my sister was in grade 6 (I would have been in grade 3). But my sister was very responsible and we lived in a neighbourhood full of families that we knew very well. I remember knowing every family on our block. Every single one.
I can imagine leaving my kids at home alone for few hours when they reach that age, but will make the actual decision when they get to that age. Knowing your neighbours and the personality of the kids is key.
I was probably 11-12yrs old when my brother (2 1/2 years younger) and I were left alone. My mom was a SAHM until I moved with my grandparents. They lived out in the country and we were alone for no more then an hour. When I came back from IL. to live with my dad, we were always left alone. My dad worked FT and he was going to school. We lived in an apartment complex, so we were always playing with our friends and the managers looked out for us. Also my BF's mom watched us too. I also grew up faster then other kids my age. I was doing house chores, laundry and cooking by 13.
Would I let DD stay home by herself at that age?? Not sure. It would depend on how mature she is.
I think there's a big difference between leaving a kid home alone for a few hours every once in a while as opposed to every day.
We left SS alone for an hour or so while running to the grocery store when he was 8. He was watching saturday morning cartoons and in most cases did not physically move the entire time we were gone!
He was 11 (5th grade), when he was left home alone about 2 hours after school a few times a week (his mom worked retail hours, so crazy schedule but was most often home).
By 12 (6th grade), he was home alone for 3 hours everyday. Sometimes his 10yo half-brother would be with him, sometimes he went to his BFF's house.
At 14 I have left him alone with DD (2yo) for up to an hour. Honestly I don't trust his attention span for much longer than that.